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We do a lot of stuff to maintain our natural hair. Natural hair is not the easiest thing to take care of. That’s where protective styling comes in at and we can give our natural hair a break and not have to mess with it. Some ladies don’t have any problems gaining length without protective styling, but some ladies simply cannot gain length. There are many ways to protect your hair with different protective styles, we’ve included pictures below:

YARN BRAIDS/GENIE LOCKS: Yarn braids are strands of wool or acrylic yarn added to ones natural hair via pinch braiding. They have a natural and light weight feel to them, giving your scalp a rest. Unlike synthetic or human hair extensions yarn braids do not put much tension on your scalp so when you get out of the chair, you won’t need a few days for it to loosen up. Yarn braids also hold moisture which minimizes itching during the life of the extensions. This becomes evident when taking down your braids; your hair feels plush and soft instead of dry and brittle. Moisture locked hairs promotes elasticity making your hair more resistant against breakage.

HAVANA/MARLEY TWISTS: Havana twists are one of the easiest braided extensions that you can do on your own. They are very large twists, twisting them takes no time and your parts do not have to be so defined. When they are done you have a beautiful natural looking style that will last you for a month or two. The larger you would like your Havana twists to be the more packs of hair you will need. While the whole idea of Havana twists is to have thick locks of hair, keep in mind you need to pick a size that fits your individual look. Please do not forget to take care of your hair when wearing protective styles such as this. You are still free to wash, condition, and moisturize your hair while wearing Havanas. Neglecting to do so may land you with some gruesome split ends.

TURBAN/SCARVES: Wearing scarves/turbans is the most simple yet stylish protective style. Easy to do and affordable. I’m sure you have scarves around your room, so just simply tie it up and wear it on your head. I like to especially rock these turban styles during the spring/summer with my oversize vintage sunglasses. Their are also many ways to tie these scarves and wear it in numerous ways. With natural hair, silk scarves are the best to wear because cotton usually soaks up a lot of the moisture in your hair. I would suggest checking out your local beauty supply store or even thrift stores for good deals on scarves!

SENEGALESE TWISTS: Senegalese twists are basically like Havana/Marley twists but much more smaller. This style is easy to maintain and quite easy to remove because it involves one piece of hair twisting around the other one. It also is an amazing transitioning hairstyle and you can wear them really short or really long, or somewhere in the middle if you prefer.This style is just a cute alternative for box braids.

As we’re rapidly moving into Spring and Summer I’m sure we’ve all noticed that we’re facing challenges with our curly hair. High humidity is extremely harsh on our curly hair. There’s also no denying that the change in seasons an be especially tough on our curly hair routine. You may notice that the products that were working for you during the winter are not really working now that the climate has changed and it’s now humid outside.

During the Spring and Summer we tend to use a lot more hair products in our curly hair because the hot and humid weather absorbs and dries up all the moisture in our hair.

Our curly hair needs hydration. For this reason, it is very important to maintain hair in the best condition possible at all times, but especially in warm and humid weather. In warm, wet weather, keep your hair very well moisturized and use a good leave-in conditioner (check out our DIY for Homemade Leave-In Conditioner). Try to avoid using products that include humectants in their ingredients, as these can aggravate problems with humidity-induced frizz. Styling gels seem to perform better in this type of weather than mousse. The polymer styling agents in gels form a nice protective film around the hair, which helps maintain the style throughout the day.

So here are a few tips to help you throughout the Spring and Summer:

Trim hair regularly

Avoid using thermal drying and styling techniques.

Gently finger comb or use a wide-toothed comb on wet hair that is saturated with a leave-in conditioner.

Be selective about chemical treatments on the hair – minimize the frequency of such processes – i.e. bleaching, coloring and etc.

Avoid frequent exposure to direct sunlight – wear a hat or use a leave-in product contains sunscreens for the hair.

Use generous amounts of moisturizing products, both in the shower and as leave-in treatments. (This reduces diffusion of moisture into and out of the hair)

Consider using a low-viscosity, easily spreadable hair gel as your primary styling agent for the summer.

Shea Moisture has a wonderful line of natural hair products. You may get stressed out trying to figure out which Shea Moisture product best suits your hair type because their are so many products to choose from. Well this post should help you figure out what products suit you well. I will break down each product Shea Moisture carries and let you know what its used for, and I also came across a chart to also help you choose which product suits your hair type. So continue reading…

Castor Oils – Packed with minerals and vitamins and is incredibly effective in moisturization, its able to penetrate quickly into ur pores and hair folicales all the way into the root, this means long term hydration into ur hair and scalp.

Vitamin E- Acts as an anti-oxident protecting yourselves from harmful free radicals and it also helps strengthen hair and promote growth.

Color Applicator bottle- Can be purchased from your local beauty supply store or online.

Applicator tip helps to control the amount of oil u use and prevents it from spilling everywhere creating a mess. Color applicator bottle has measurements conveniently listed on the side of the bottle.

Measurements:

Olive Oil – 2 1/2 ounces

Jojoba Oil – 2 1/2 ounces

Castor Oil – 1 ounce

Sweet Almond Oil – 1 ounce

Avocado Oil – 1 ounce

Vitamin E – 1/2 ounce

Mix all the ingredients together. Cover with top and give it a little shake to mix.

All oils can be easily found at your local grocery or health food store (Whole Foods).

How do you use it?Body: Immediately after shower while your body is still damp, squeeze a bit of the oil on your skin and rub it in.Hair: After washing hair, before towel drying, squeeze a bit of the oil in your hand and rub it throughout sections of your hair, then twist or towel dry your hair.You’ll notice an immediate shine and softness.It also makes a great hot oil treatment!

If you’re checking us out, then you’ve probably found us through our Instagram Page ‘SheHasGoneCurly’. Well you’ve come to the right spot for all the tips, tricks, hairstyles and more for naturally curly hair! Be sure to follow our blog by providing your email address in the section to the right of our page to stay up to date with all of our posts!